WASHINGTON D.C. (CelebrityAccess) — On Wednesday, the Library of Congress announced the list of recordings that will be added to the National Recording Registry of the Library of Congress for 2019, including hits by Whitney Houston, Tina Turner, and Selena among others.
Under the terms of the National Recording Preservation Act of 2000, the Librarian, with input from the Library’s National Recording Preservation Board (NRPB), annually selects 25 audio recordings that are deemed as “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant” and that are at least 10 years old.
This year’s list included audio artifacts from radio sportscasts, children’s recordings, classical, field, country, folk, jazz, pop, rap, disco, Latin and Broadway. The spoken-word and musical recordings span over a half-century, from 1920 to 2008.
Music that made the cut this year included the Village People’s classic disco hit and wedding reception staple “YMCA.”
“I had no idea when we wrote Y.M.C.A that it would become one of the most iconic songs in the world, and fixture at almost every wedding, birthday party, bar mitzvah and sporting event. I am glad that the music of Village People has made the world smile for over 40 years with our music. On behalf of my partners Jacques Morali and Henri Belolo, we thank you and are honored to be in such elite company,” said Victor Willis, lead singer and writer of the lyrics of Y.M.C.A.
Paul Whiteman and his Orchestra 1920 hit single “Whispering” as well as Memphis Minnie’s 1941 classic “Me and My Chauffeur Blues” also made the cut.
Country hitmaker Eddy Arnold’s “Make the World Go Away” (1965) was added to the registry, as was Glen Campbell’s 1968 single “Wichita Lineman.”
Albums added to the registry this year included Dusty Springfield’s “Dusty in Memphis”; Cheap Trick’s 1978 live album “Cheap Trick at Budokan”; and Tina Turner’s seminal 1984 album “Private Dancer.”
“The National Recording Registry is the evolving playlist of the American soundscape. It reflects moments in history captured through the voices and sounds of the time,” Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden said. “We received over 800 nominations this year for culturally, historically or aesthetically significant recordings to add to the registry. As genres and formats continue to expand, the Library of Congress is committed to working with our many partners to preserve the sounds that have touched our hearts and shaped our culture.”
2019 Additions To The National Recording Registry
- “Whispering” (single), Paul Whiteman and his Orchestra (1920)
- “Protesta per Sacco e Vanzetti,” Compagnia Columbia; “Sacco e Vanzetti,” Raoul Romito (1927)
- “La Chicharronera” (single), Narciso Martinez and Santiago Almeida (1936)
- “Arch Oboler’s Plays” episode “The Bathysphere.” (Nov. 18, 1939)
- “Me and My Chauffeur Blues” (single), Memphis Minnie (1941)
- The 1951 National League tiebreaker: New York Giants vs. Brooklyn Dodgers — Russ Hodges, announcer (Oct. 3, 1951)
- Puccini’s “Tosca” (album), Maria Callas, Giuseppe di Stefano, Angelo Mercuriali, Tito Gobbi, Melchiorre Luise, Dario Caselli, Victor de Sabata (1953)
- “Hello Muddah, Hello Fadduh” (single), Allan Sherman (1963)
- WGBH broadcast of the Boston Symphony on the day of the John F. Kennedy assassination, Boston Symphony Orchestra (1963)
- “Fiddler on the Roof” (album), original Broadway cast (1964)
- “Make the World Go Away” (single), Eddy Arnold (1965)
- Hiromi Lorraine Sakata Collection of Afghan Traditional Music (1966-67; 1971-73)
- “Wichita Lineman” (single), Glen Campbell (1968)
- “Dusty in Memphis” (album), Dusty Springfield (1969)
- “Mister Rogers Sings 21 Favorite Songs From ‘Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood’ ” (album), Fred Rogers (1973)
- “Cheap Trick at Budokan” (album), Cheap Trick (1978)
- Holst: Suite No. 1 in E-Flat, Suite No. 2 in F / Handel: Music for the Royal Fireworks / Bach: Fantasia in G (Special Edition Audiophile Pressing album), Frederick Fennell and the Cleveland Symphonic Winds (1978)
- “Y.M.C.A.” (single), Village People (1978)
- “A Feather on the Breath of God” (album), Gothic Voices; Christopher Page, conductor; Hildegard von Bingen, composer (1982)
- “Private Dancer” (album), Tina Turner (1984)
- “Ven Conmigo” (album), Selena (1990)
- “The Chronic” (album), Dr. Dre (1992)
- “I Will Always Love You” (single), Whitney Houston (1992)
- “Concert in the Garden” (album), Maria Schneider Orchestra (2004)
- “Percussion Concerto” (album), Colin Currie (2008)
